In Which The Seven Are Oblivious
by Myra109
Summary: (But Grover Underwood is not). When Grover visits camp after the Giant War, he reads Leo's emotions and discovers that the notorious joker is not as happy as he appears. AU
1. In Which Grover Reads Leo's Emotions

_Hi, guys. As of now, this is a one shot, but if enough people want me to, I will make it a two or a three shot._

 _This is a prompt from Dawnbreak55_

 ** _Disclaimer: I own nothing_**

* * *

Despite the Giant War having ended only a month ago, things were surprisingly normal at camp. It was sunny (as usual); the air was filled with laughter and shouts and speaking and cursing (as usual); Katie Gardener was yelling at the Stoll brothers, her voice raising above all others (as usual). Like I said, things were pretty normal for a camp that barely escaped the biggest war in centuries alive and just barely avoided the upcoming apocalypse.

Leo Valdez. How many of you have heard of him? Joker, prankster, son of Hephaestus, hero of Olympus, defeater of Gaea, awful flirt, and doomed to forever be single.

You forgot depressed, over worked, exhausted, hurting, angry, and struggling to maintain control over his mask, his emotions, and his powers.

No one knew this side of Leo. It was hidden behind a carefully crafted façade. "Humor is a good way to hide the pain." That's his motto, and no one ever saw through the mask. Until now, that is.

This is the story in which the seven are oblivious, but Grover Underwood is not.

"Hey, G-man!" Percy exclaimed as he clapped his best friend on the back.

Camp hadn't seen hair nor hide of Grover since the war because he was working hard on getting the forces of nature back in working order. Putting out some fires, mourning those that died in the war, and healing the injured. Nature must go on with the world, and as we all know, war damages it. Long story short, getting the forces of nature up and running again became a full time job for Grover, the Lord of the Wild. After a month of reconstruction, Grover had returned to camp for a visit.

The seven were gathering outside the Pavillion, all except for Leo, who was helping his siblings with the reconstruction.

"How's being Lord of the Wild treating you?" Percy asked.

Grover shrugged. "It's pretty good. Pretty much a full time job now, but the forces of nature are almost back up and running again. The war destroyed a lot of nature, especially here in New York, but we've come along way since the war ended. How's camp?"

"It's great," Annabeth replied as she leaned against a nearby wall. "The wounded are healed. Funerals are taken care of," she said, her voice adopting a tone full of grief for their fallen comrades and friends. "Anyway, the rebuilding is going great. Cabins are fixed up; Big House is mostly rebuilt. Some interior stuff, but beyond that, it's good. The Hephaestus kids are still working on fixing up some other buildings, like the arena."

"How's Camp Jupiter?" Grover asked Jason. "Didn't you just visit?"

Jason nodded. "I visited a week ago. It's... wonderful. Frank and Hazel are visiting here for the next few days. Frank needs a break from all the fantastic Praetor work he's been doing."

Frank blushed. "Reyna's been doing most of it..."

"That is a whole lot of dung, and you know it," Percy laughed. "Frank actually had a whole new wing for their Infirmary put in, not to mention handling the funerals. He and Reyna also organized the building of a new monument to honor those that died in the war, both Greek and Roman. And that's only the tip of the ice berg."

Grover nodded at Frank. "Sounds impressive. Maybe I'll stop by Camp Jupiter to see what a good job you're doing. Now, anything else I'm missing?"

"Nico and Will started dating," Piper told him.

Grover raised an eyebrow. "Nico-the son of Hades- is dating Will Solace-"

"The son of Apollo, yes," Hazel replied. "Surprisingly, light and dark go pretty good together. Nico introduced Will to McDonald's, and Will introduced Nico to... what was it called?"

"Starbucks," Annabeth supplied.

"Yeah, Starbucks."

"Anyway," Grover said, "how's-"

"Hey, guys!" Leo shouted as he appeared. "Oh, hey... Grover, right? I don't think we met, but Percy's told me all about you."

Yes, you heard that. Grover and Leo had never met before that. During the building of the Argo II, Grover was busy searching high and low for Percy, and Leo was constantly in Bunker Nine. Due to this, they never really crossed paths. After the war was won, Leo was in the Infirmary (no one really knew how the physician's curse affected people beyond bringing them back to life, so Nico dragged Leo to the Infirmary and had Will prod and poke Leo to ensure that he was healthy and wouldn't drop dead any second). Besides, after the war, Grover barely had time for a quick conversation with Percy and Annabeth before he had to run off to the wilderness and do his Lord of the Wild thing.

"You must be Leo Valdez," Grover said as he shook Leo's hand. "Thanks for the whole defeating Gaea thing by the way."

Leo laughed before performing an elaborate bow.

"It was my pleasure, good sir," he replied, making the other six of the seven laugh.

Grover managed a weak chuckle, but he was more focused on staring Leo, who appeared so happy and fun loving and overall, content with his life.

Grover's ability to read emotions told him otherwise.

Leo checked his watch and cursed in Spanish.

"Dang it, break's over. See you guys at dinner," he said before speeding off towards the construction at the sword area.

Grover frowned. That break didn't last very long, he though. Probably not even three minutes.

"Hey, guys?" he said. "You know how I can read emotions, right?"

Sounds of confirmation met Grover's ears.

"Did you guys know that Leo's depressed?"

Silence, and then...

Laughter.

"Nice one, Grover, but Leo's happy as usual," Percy chuckled.

"I don't think I've seen him be anything but happy," Piper added.

Grover shrugged. "Well, he is, and I'm going to figure out why he never told you."

Grover walked away, strolling towards the sword arena and leaving the other six members of the seven in the dust.

"That was weird," Frank muttered.

The others nodded in agreement.

Grover approached Leo, who was sitting on the ground at the edge of the construction site, sipping from a water bottle. He placed the bottle on the ground and went to stand up to continue building, but Grover interrupted him.

"Can I sit?" He asked, gesturing to the patch of grass beside Leo.

"Sure," Leo replied.

Grover seated himself beside Leo.

"Leo," Grover said, hesitantly. "Did you know satyrs can read emotions?"

Leo paled, but he chose to give a shaky laugh instead of confessing.

"I did not," he replied. "Is that like your sixth sense or something?"

Grover shrugged. "I guess you could call it that. Since I can read emotions, I know if a person is happy, angry, scared. It's also how I know that you're depressed."

Leo laughed. "Me? Depressed? That's hilarious."

"Leo... my ability doesn't lie. You're mainly depressed; you're angry, envious, grieving, hurting. Leo, I haven't felt so much hurt radiate off of someone in a very long time. Probably not since Nico was ten, and that was three, four years ago. I felt it when his sister joined the Hunters. Long story short, I can tell you've been carrying this around for a long time. You need to tell someone."

"No," Leo replied. "I can't. The more vulnerable I am, the easier people can hurt me, and that only makes things worse. I have to get back to work."

Leo stood and left Grover sitting on the ground with too much to think about.

* * *

"Grover," Percy said when Grover returned after a not-so-successful talk with Leo. "What did you mean by Leo isn't happy?"

Grover sighed. "Look, I haven't felt so much hurt in one person since Bianca joined the Hunters and hurt Nico by doing so."

"But Leo's always so happy," Jason said.

"It's an act," Grover replied. "That happiness that Leo shows... it's all a mask to keep you away from the truth. I asked around and heard some stories about Leo. Now I just wonder how you guys didn't know sooner. Look, you guys are my friends, but you can be really oblivious sometimes. Yes, even you, Annabeth. Do yourselves and Leo a favor, and wake the heck up."

After that uncharacteristic outburst, Grover stormed away, leaving six very confused teenagers behind him.

The other members of the seven may be oblivious, but Grover Underwood wasn't, and he was going to find a way to help Leo Valdez.

* * *

 _if you'd like to see a continuation, let me know in the reviews._

 _Make sure to review._


	2. In Which The Seven Notice Leo's Pain

_I have been planning to do this for a long time, but it took me so long to find the time and motivation to do it!_

 _This will be a three shot! So there will be one more chapter after this._

 ** _Disclaimer: I own nothing._**

 ** _WARNINGS: ATTEMPTED SUICIDE_**

* * *

"Nyssa?" Grover called as he approached the construction sight.

The daughter of Hephaestus turned around to face him… or more accurately, look down at him. Nyssa was standing on the roof of one of the cabins they were fixing, hammering some nails into the material, and upon seeing the satyr, she climbed down using the ladder leaning against the wall of the cabin.

"Hey, Grover," she greeted. "What's up?"

"Have you seen Leo?" Grover questioned.

"I think he went back to the cabin. He said something about forgetting his tool belt," Nyssa answered, scratching her head. "Now that I think about it, that was pretty weird. I've never seen him without that tool belt. I think he sleeps with it on," she laughed. "Anyway, why do you ask?"

Grover frowned. Leo had been wearing his tool belt the last time the satyr saw him...

"I just need to talk to him for a little bit," Grover replied. "Thanks, Nyssa."

"Your welcome," she responded, a little confused as to why Grover would want to talk to Leo, who he barely knew. She shrugged it off and resumed her work while Grover headed towards Cabin Nine.

"Leo?" he called upon entering the cabin. "Hello?"

The cabin was empty.

Grover sighed and sat on Leo's bed, waiting for the fire user to return to the cabin (after all, he had to come back at some point, and waiting for him was probably better than trying to find him in Camp Half Blood, which wasn't exactly a small camp), but his elbow smashed against a button on the headboard. Grover may be Lord of the Wild now, but he hadn't lost his clumsiness when he was given the title.

Grover mumbled his frustration, but before he could reverse whatever the button did, he found out _exactly_ what it did.

The floor around the bed groaned, and the bed began to descend, causing Grover to yelp and cling to the headboard for dear life as the bed sank into the floor.

Grover expected the bed to crash into the ground, but instead, it rested softly on the floor, and after Grover was positive he wasn't about to die, he pried his eyes, which had been tightly closed, open.

He was in an underground room. Work tables and benches lined the walls, all of them littered with tools and scraps of metal and other materials and half finished projects. There was a packed back pack to the side of the bed, and a dresser was pushed up against the wall. There was a closed door in the corner of the room, which presumedly lead to the bathroom. A light shone from under the door.

"Leo?" Grover said, knocking lightly on the door. "Can we talk?"

There was no response.

"Leo?"

Silence. No words, no footsteps, not a single sound. You could've heard a pin drop.

"Leo?" Grover repeated, turning the door knob, only to find it locked. "Leo!"

He sniffed, and his eyes widened as a familiar stench filled his nose.

Blood.

Grover yanked on the doorknob, but when pulling didn't work, he stepped back and kicked the door down with one swift kick his parents would've been proud of.

Leo Valdez was leaning against the bathroom cabinet, pale and lifeless. Blood poured out of his wrists and onto the tiled floor.

"Leo!" Grover shouted, kneeling at the mechanic's side and pulling off his own shirt. He ripped the fabric in two pieces and tied one half around each of Leo's wrists to slow the bleeding.

"HELP!" Grover wailed.

Footsteps sounded, and he heard the bed creak as someone jumped through the hole in the floor and landed on the bed. Two sets of footsteps came running, and Nico Di Angelo and Will Solange appeared in the doorway, horrified by the sight before them.

"Don't just stand there! Help me!" Grover pleaded, pressing harder on the make shift compresses around Leo's wrists.

"Nico, go to the Infirmary and tell them to bring a stretcher to the Hephaestus cabin," Will barked.

Nico nodded and faded into the shadows.

Will knelt beside Leo and used his own jacket to wrap around Leo's wrists, adding more pressure.

"Oh, Leo," Grover murmured. "Why?"

Will seemed to be thinking the same thing, but he was in too much shock to voice it.

Grover shouldn't be surprised. He should've expected this. Leo's mental state was already terrifyingly fragile, and Grover had pushed him. This was all his fault…

Nico appeared with two healers, and they lifted Leo onto the stretcher. They were about to run for the exit, but Nico stopped them.

"Trying to lift him through that hole in the floor is too risky! I'll shadow travel you to the Infirmary. Hang on tight."

Shadows wrapped around them, and seconds later, Will and Grover were alone.

Grover ran for the exit and used his powerful goat legs to leap through the floor while Will sat on the bed, which began to rise until Will was able to hop off of the bed and onto the main floor.

Grover bolted out of the cabin and nearly ran into the seven.

"Grover, have you seen Leo? We need to talk to him," Percy asked.

"He's in the Infirmary," Grover told them, already running towards that very location.

The other members of the seven rushed to catch up, each more stunned and worried than the last.

"Why?" Jason demanded.

"He attempted suicide," Grover responded before running faster and leaving the heroes of Olympus in the dust.

The six of them exchanged shocked glances.

Leo Valdez… depressed… suicide… The words didn't fit together. They didn't _belong_ together.

 _"That happiness that Leo shows... it's all a mask to keep you away from the truth. I asked around and heard some stories about Leo. Now I just wonder how you guys didn't know sooner. Look, you guys are my friends, but you can be really oblivious sometimes. Yes, even you, Annabeth. Do yourselves and Leo a favor, and wake the heck up."_

Was Grover right? Were they really that oblivious to Leo's pain?

* * *

Leo was drifting. He couldn't focus on anything, not even the horrible pain in his wrists. Leo had never been burned, but he assumed that this is what it would feel like; still, he could barely feel it now.

Darkness rolled on for miles. Any sounds that managed to worm their way into his ears became fuzzy mumbles by the time they reached his brain. He could feel small sensations, like the prick of a needle in his arm or the pressure of something around his wrists, but it all seemed to be dull.

He couldn't speak. He couldn't see. He could barely hear. He could barely feel.

Then, the cold set in.

It was a frigid feeling that settled into his bones, making him shiver. But that wasn't right… he couldn't be cold. He couldn't ever remember a time he'd ever been cold. His fire powers didn't allow it. In fact, when it snowed, people huddled around him for warmth because Leo's body temperature was naturally high. Or should I say _unnaturally_. Leo nearly laughed when he thought about all those times he freaked out adults when they took his temperature, and it was like 115 degrees.

But he couldn't laugh because an unbearable amount of fear crashed over him in waves.

Leo had spent his entire life wanting to die. He'd attempted suicide many times, but he'd never been afraid, not even when he technically died defeating Gaea.

Before… his life hadn't been worth living in his eyes. His mother died. In foster care, if it wasn't abuse or neglect, it was bullying or generally feeling unloved. Whether the foster parents tried to show affection or not, he never felt wanted, never felt loved, never felt at home. The few times he did were ruined, usually by monsters or unforeseen events (unexpected deaths of friends, for example. That had happened far too many times) or his past coming back to haunt him (particularly in the incident of his final foster home when his best friend got kidnapped by a gang Leo got mixed up in, but that's story for another time). Then, he never felt like he belonged at camp or with the seven. Even after he defeated Gaea, no one seemed to care when he worked for days on end; when he disappeared for several hours because he took a walk in the woods and fainted from lack of sleep (that had happened three times in the past month); when they saw his packed bag in his room, like he was planning to run away. If they made the connection, which it was unlikely they did, they didn't care enough to talk to him about it.

But then Grover came along, and he genuinely seemed to care…

The cold and the terror were getting stronger now, and Leo realized something that made him begin to sob. Ever since his mom died, the thought hadn't crossed his mind. In fact, the exact opposite of this thought had plagued his mind since that summer day nearly six years ago.

The thought ricocheted off of his skull like a ping pong ball, and Leo cried harder.

For the first time since his mom died, _he didn't want to die._

"And you're not going to."

Leo managed to open his eyes, and he found himself staring at the ceiling of his mom's warehouse, the one that had burned to the ground with her inside. But it looked like it had before the fire.

Leo struggled to sit up, and he found himself staring at a person he would've given anything to see again.

"Mama?"

* * *

 _Thanks for reading! I appreciate all of the reviews, and if you have the time, please review again!_


	3. In Which Leo's Smile Is No Longer Fake

_WHAT? AN UPDATE? From me? No way!_

 _Anyway, I know I have been gone a long time (dodges random flying shoe). Hey, that was unnecessary! But I am back with the... drum roll, please... final chapter of **In Which The Seven Are Oblivious!**_

 **Disclaimer: I own nothing. If I did, lots of things would've been different and people would no longer be able to read a single word without crying from all the angst.**

* * *

Within seconds, Leo was on his feet and diving into his mother's arms. He was somewhat surprised to find out that she was solid; he half expected her to be a ghost that he would run right through, but no. She was solid and warm and the hug was just as comforting as Leo remembered it.

"Hello, mijo," she murmured into his curls. "You've grown up to be such a strong boy. Man, more accurately. You have no idea how much I've missed you, my lion."

Leo sobbed into her chest. "I missed you, too," he whispered as a response.

"Why did you do this to yourself?" she asked, holding his wrists. In this dream/vision, the cuts Leo had made had faded almost entirely, but if Leo squinted hard enough, he could vaguely see where he had cut his skin.

Leo didn't answer, but he didn't need to. Somehow, his mother just knew what was wrong with him without him saying a word. It had been like that for as long as he could remember.

"Leo, your friends do care about you," she told him. "They're crying because of how guilty they feel about not noticing that you were hurting. They're so scared that they're going to lose you. Trust me, mijo, I know."

"Are you a ghost or a vision or…" Leo's heart broke as the next theory crossed his mind, "my imagination?"

Esperanza smiled. "I'm a ghost. Apparently, Hades owes your father a favor, and your father knew that you needed me now more than ever.

"Leo, you are the strongest, bravest person I know or have ever known. I understand why you did what you did. If I were in your shoes, I would've probably done the same thing, but you are not me, Leo. You are much stronger than I was or am."

Leo shook his head. "That's not true. I'm weak, a coward. I'm not the son you wanted."

"You are not weak or a coward. Hurting doesn't make you either of those things."

Leo looked up. The pain and self doubt didn't vanish just like that, but hearing his mother say those words made the pain fade just a little.

"And you're right. You're not the son I wanted."

Any trace of a smile dropped from Leo's face at that sentence, but Esperanza smiled at her only son, and she continued.

"You're better," Esperanza added. "You're more than I ever could've hoped for in a son. You're not the son I wanted or expected, but you're the son I needed."

Leo smiled before he gasped as he felt his mother begin to fade.

"My time is up," she stated, reluctantly. "Just remember, Leo, that I am always with you, always watching over you, and most of all, remember that I will always love you."

Esperanza pressed a kiss to her child's forehead, and Leo felt a single tear run down his face.

"We'll see each other again. I promise you. Just… not too soon, okay, mijo?"

Leo nodded. "I love you, Mamá."

"I love you, too, my brave lion."

Esperanza Valdez faded from sight, and Leo shivered as the terrifying cold settled back into his bones. Fatigue struck him, and he fell to his knees as exhaustion overwhelmed him, followed by an excruciating pain that caused him to pass out.

* * *

Pace, pace, pace, pace.

Pace, pace, pace, pace.

Pace, pace, pace, pace.

Pace-

"Jason! Stop pacing!" Annabeth ordered, and Jason reluctantly stopped in his tracks and sat down between Percy and Piper.

"Do you think he's going to be okay?" Frank murmured.

Hazel pursed her lips. "I think so. He's not going to die, I know that, but okay… who knows? He hasn't been okay for a long time…"

"And none of us noticed," Jason mumbled.

"Leo was very good at hiding it," Percy pointed out. "But we should've noticed something. How did we not notice _something?"_

"It's amazing what a smile can hide," Piper summed up.

The door of the Infirmary opened, and Will stepped into the room, his shrubs covered in blood. Leo's blood.

The seven shot to their feet at the sight of the doctor, and Will, sensing their anxiety, began the diagnosis.

"He's out of the woods. He lost a lot of blood and did require stitches in both arms. He's malnourished and sleep deprived and is at a risk of infection of his wounds or general sickness, which wouldn't help his recovery, if he's not carefully watched. He will need to stay in the Infirmary for two weeks at least for me to monitor his recovery. After that, he will come to the Infirmary every other day just to check up on his health and his injuries for another two weeks. And after the month is up, we'll be able to tell whether Leo needs to continue coming to the Infirmary. That is his physical health. Mental will be a little harder. He'll need all of us right now more than ever. He's still asleep and will be out cold for the next few hours. You can come in, but don't crowd the bed. There's a lot of equipment, so be prepared for that."

Will led them into the Infirmary, and the seven couldn't help but stop in their tracks when they saw Leo, pale as a ghost, lying in a hospital bed. He was surrounded by machines (built by the Hephaestus cabin, mostly Leo, with special metals that would repel monsters instead of attract them) and had bandages wrapped around both wrists with several needles taped to his arms to supply blood, medicine, and fluids.

He looked sickly and lifeless, and Leo was way too small for that bed. They hadn't noticed how thin Leo really was until he was wearing Infirmary clothes (a green shirt and green pants) that did nothing to hide his small frame, unlike his usually baggy work clothes.

"He doesn't even look like Leo any more," Piper whispered.

The other five members of the seven agreed as they sat around the bed, making sure to steer clear of the equipment to avoid knocking into it.

Now… all they could do was wait.

* * *

Leo came to, slowly, and as he pried his eyes open, he found himself staring at the other members of the seven, the white sheets of an Infirmary bed, and a lot of needles.

Leo didn't have a fear of needles, but it still freaked him out when he found himself staring at what seemed to be dozens of needles, and he unconsciously shifted in the bleary panic of waking up so suddenly before deciding to remain as still as possible to avoid yanking any needles out of his body.

His movement caused Piper to stir, and when she noticed that he was awake, she swatted at the other five teenagers without taking her eyes off of him.

"Ow!" Percy muttered. "Piper, what was that for- Leo!"

That woke the others up real quick, and it also brought Nico, Will, and Grover into the room.

"Hey, guys, I'm sorry about-" Leo began.

"No, don't you dare apologize," Piper snarled, making Leo pull away from her slightly.

"Piper, no scaring the patient," Will said, but he couldn't help but laugh.

Piper continued as though she hadn't heard him. "We should be apologizing. You haven't been okay for a long time, and if Grover hadn't told us or you hadn't…" she gestured to his wrists, "We probably never would've known. We're sorry we were so oblivious to how you were feeling."

Leo smiled. "Apology accepted, but still, I'm sorry I put you guys through this."

"We're just glad you're okay," Nico said with a small smile. "Have a nice chat?'

Everyone else was confused, but Leo grinned and nodded. "Tell your dad I said thanks."

Everyone looked like they wanted to ask what that was all about but decided against it.

Leo turned to Grover. "Thanks," he told the satyr. He didn't specify what he was thankful for, but he didn't have to because Grover knew when Leo said thank you, he was thanking Grover for everything, not just one of the many things Grover had done for him over the past few days.

Grover clapped a hand on Leo's shoulder and smiled at the son of Hephaestus. He didn't say anything, but he didn't have to. His relieved and ecstatic smile said it all as Leo finally- _finally_ \- started to open up, even if it was only a little.

"So when do I get out of here?" Leo asked.

Will chuckled. "Not for a while, my friend."

Leo groaned while everyone else laughed, and Jason ruffled his hair while Leo smiled and uselessly swatted Jason's hands away from his curls, pretending to be annoyed as he rolled his eyes, playfully.

"Don't worry, Repair Boy. We'll be here to keep you company," Piper told the boy she thought of as a little brother, taking his hand in her's.

"Yeah," Jason agreed. "We're not going anywhere. I promise"

Leo grinned, and for the first time in a long time, Leo didn't have to fake a smile.

* * *

 _Overall, I loved that ending. I think this might be one of my favorite stories I have ever written. A special thanks to Dawnbreak55 for the prompt, and I apologize the story took so long to complete._

 _ALSO: I know a lot of people are waiting for updates on my stories, **Reading Fire Triangle** and **The Fiery Hero**. I would like to finish **The Fiery Hero** and get to chapter 24-28 in **Reading Fire Triangle** (the point where I will have to put the story on Haitus until the original **Fire Triangle** by NBrokenShacklesN is updated) by the end of the year, so I am hoping that will mean you will see updates for both stories sometime in October or November. I cannot promise, but I can tell you it is very likely you will see updates for those stories within the next few months._

 _Thank you for reading and for sticking with this story. Short as it was, it took a long time to complete, but so many of you still stuck with it, and I am very thankful for that. Thank you and if you have not already, please go check out my other stories. Goodbye and have a nice day!_


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